tempest
by hyperphonic
Summary: II. And, as if she'd predicted it like the oracles in Neji's stories, it did. vignette collection/ratings may vary/unbeta'd
1. I

**for**: giselle, because friends like you are hard to come by.

**as it were**: i've never fought katana before, but i have spent a lot of time with broadsword and so my writing is more informed towards that-

a few terms you might want to know in advance:

_foible_: the weakest part of the blade, falling from the middle to the point

_true edge_: the cutting edge, basically. it's the only edge you ever strike with.

* * *

"Right."

"Slow."

"Don't begin your strike with the foible."

"High."

"Good."

Inhaling deeply, Sakura blinked the rain out of her eyes and reset her stance, hips squaring as she relaxed into neutral, katana hilt held tightly in her hands. "Again," Sasuke commanded, low voice rumbling under steady drizzle of autumn rain. The med nin gave a nod and stepped forwards, blade flashing above and behind her head as she brought it around to strike at his right shoulder. A wind rushed through their clearing and the rain turned diagonal as blades met with a clang.

"Slow."

Tired of yet another fluid parry, Sakura switched tactics and brought her blade up, stepping forwards explosively as she drove her true edge down and towards his head, "Weak," the young heir began, palm flat against the flat of his blade as he deflected her strike again, "in the wrists, commit completely and the blade won't let you down."

Easy enough to say, but when her target was the front of her stupid teammate's head, it was harder done. "Right."

The wind shook again, rattling yellowed leaves off of their branches, and Sakura darted forwards, intent on at least catching his ribs.

"Good," a slightly strained parry.

She grinned and pressed forwards again, strength surging from her legs into her core. Teeth grit and she ducked his shoulder strike, blade coming up to catch his bicep as she whirled past his arm. "Much better." She grinned, eyeing the slim cut she'd managed to lay against his skin. "Watch your distance though, you got awfully close."

Green eyes danced, "we're practicing close range combat, Sasuke, we're going to get close." Unimpressed, the dark boy rushed forward, blade swinging down towards her neck as the wind and rain pulsed again, "but if you're _carelessly _close" their blades locked, and he began to back her up. "Things can _happen._"

Somewhere between the rain pinging against their steel, and the clinging of her hair to her neck_, _he pressed her back against a nearly bare tree. "And that's where you're at a disadvantage," brute strength pushed their blades up and over to press against the soaked bark.  
"Because you've no room to prepare a strike."

And then he was kissing her, lips wet with rainwater and a little rough in their affection, though the kunoichi couldn't bring herself to mind. Around them the storm increased, trees springing to life under the gale; and the lovers broke, swords clattering to the ground as Sasuke rushed to wrap one arm around her waist.

His free hand crept into her drenched hair and he kissed her again, pulling away only to pant against her lips; "and I never want you to be unable to strike."


	2. II

**prompt**: "awkward", and i should note that the initial chapter's was "training".

**because**: initially i wanted to make this super lighthearted and a little silly, but in the end i decided on developing their relationship a little more. (i'm sorry though, that the awkward part of this doesn't last long at all.)

**got a prompt**: shoot it to my tumblr, _hyperphonic_, or leave a review, either is fine!

**additionally**: thank you so much for the kind words, reviews mean a lot, especially when your alarm goes off at six. /smooches

* * *

At first, their relationship was anything but natural.

Or rather, it was natural in that the two of them needed to think more about breathing than the necessity of each other; but simplistically romantic gestures were… _Awkward_. Not butchered words and kisses where only your lips met awkward; just that hands sometimes shook, and Sasuke was nowhere near as level headed when it came to tangled fingers as he was with Raikiri in the air.

But Sakura didn't mind; because even when his lips were too rough, or his voice was monotone when he complimented her fighting, he was still holding her, still making an effort. And plus, she could remember how awkward it had initially felt to set aside kunai and chakra strings to fight with her fists. They'd fall into step soon enough.

And, as if she'd predicted it like the oracles in Neji's stories, it did.

The rain left Konoha with a warm spring wind, and as the sun reinstated itself in a newly blue sky, Sasuke kissed her. "You're back," the med nin smiled when they pulled apart, cheeks flushed lightly. He responded with a grunt, and a bump of his nose against her jaw. "The Delegate was as eager to be done as we were," his arms snaked around her waist, palms relishing the soft give of her scrubs. "Are you busy?"

In truth, Sakura had just gotten out of surgery, and was probably going to be called into another by the time she got to her desk- But she'd been on call since 3 am, when the sky was still dark, and now Konoha was bustling under a warm spring sun. "I bet I could talk Tsunande into giving me an hour off." _His arms were so warm, and he'd never been this forward before and distance makes the heart grow fo_- "How long have you been here?"

Well, she couldn't just _tell_ him that it was going on twelve hours. "Only since about noon," she lied.

The young heir didn't buy it, a fact expressed by one dark brow elegantly raised. "Okay fine," she broke, "I've been here since three."

"In the morning?"

Defeatedly, "yeah.."

"Tsunande will release you for the day then."

It took Sakura a half-second to register that her lover was stalking down the hall, shoulders square as he left, clearly intent on breaking down the Hokage's door. "Wait, Sasuke, that's not a good idea!"

Tsunande, as it were, turned out to be so smashed that she had no trouble releasing her pupil for the day, though not without a slurred jibe regarding shinobi libido. "Like _rabbits!_"

It turned out, however, that clan repopulation was the last thing on Sasuke's mind when they darkened the door to Sakura's apartment.

Instead he kissed her temple before pulling her towards the small, cool room she slept in, hellbent on sleeping, _preferably_ with a kunoichi in his arms.


End file.
